Release: 5116-05
For Release: September 20, 2005

U.S. COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION ALLEGES THAT NEVADA RESIDENT BERNADETTE FLAVELL VIOLATED A COMMISSION ORDER BY PROVIDING FALSE INFORMATION

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced today the filing of an injunctive action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on September 14, 2005, against Bernadette Flavell charging her with violating a prior CFTC Order by providing false information and failing to provide required information to the National Futures Association (NFA).

The prior CFTC Order, issued in July 2002, settled a CFTC complaint charging Flavell and others with defrauding clients and prospective clients through material misrepresentations in newspaper advertisements and written promotional materials regarding the commodity futures trading systems they marketed, called System of Success-Window to Profit’s (SOS).� The material misrepresentations were found to violate the anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act and related regulations (see CFTC News Release 4444-00, September 7, 2000). �The CFTC Order required Flavell, among other things, to pay a civil monetary penalty of $50,000 pursuant to an income-based, ten-year payment plan that required the identification of assets and submission of sworn financial statements to the NFA for the purpose of determining payment amounts.

The CFTC complaint alleges that Flavell violated the CFTC Order by failing to submit certain required financial statements. The complaint further alleges that on the three occasions, Flavell submitted sworn financial statements to the NFA that hid the existence of various corporations in which Flavell had an interest and various bank accounts controlled by Flavell with balances that, at various times, ranged between $675,000 and $805,000.�

The complaint seeks preliminary and permanent injunctive relief, civil monetary penalties for each violation of the Commodity Exchange Act, and a trading ban.

The following Division of Enforcement staff are responsible for this case:� Philip D. Rix, Elizabeth C. Brennan, Steven Ringer, Lenel Hickson, Stephen J. Obie, and Richard Wagner.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Media Contacts
Alan Sobba
(202) 418-5080
Dennis Holden
(202) 418-5088
Office of External Affairs

Staff Contact
Richard Wagner
Deputy Director
CFTC Division of Enforcement
(202) 418-5390

Related Document
Complaint